Droid X tops all Android superphones in battery life tests

Well lookey here, it’s an Android showdown pitting the hottest Android smartphones out there in a battle royale (with cheese), but it’s not going spec for spec. Instead, LaptopMag has comiled the topAndroid handsets for a battery life test, and you’ll be surprised who comes out on top.

LaptopMag was fair in their tests, setting all of the phones to the following settings:

First, we download My Settings and Advanced Task Killer, two free apps that are useful regardless. Then, we open My Settings, and do the following: Turn screen brightness to 40%, and turn off auto brightness. Turn off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS location, cell location, and auto sync. Deactivate screen timeout; that is, make sure the screen stays on indefinitely. In the Web browser, we turn off Flash support and plug-ins. We placed the phone in an area that was receiving at least 4 bars of service.

One of the biggest surprises was how the handsets sporting AMOLED displays performed the worst. The Droid Incredible, Samsung Captivate, and Samsung Vibrant, which all have AMOLED displays were the worst performers over all. When Samsung announced their Super AMOLED displays, they said that the new displays would help battery life extend past what standard AMOLED display could deliver. Sadly, it doesn’t look like Super AMOLED displays helped all that much.

Also to our surprise, the HTC EVO 4G and Epic 4G (which has a Super AMOLED display) brought up the middle of the bunch, with the Epic 4G squeezing out just a couple more minutes than the EVO. We’re not sure if the tests were performed in a 4G area, but it’s interesting how the two 4G phones performed almost exactly the same.

The top three performers were the Dell Streak, the Motorola Droid 2, and the Motorola Droid X, with the Droid X kicking the pants off the rest of the competition. The X lasted a whopping 7 hours and 42 minutes, with the Dell Streak following it with 7 hours and 35 minutes. The Droid 2 performed admirably, and got 7 hours and 7 minutes on a single charge. This test is very surprising in that the top two performers had the biggest screens out of the whole lot, with the exception of the EVO 4G, which we have been all too aware of the battery issues surrounding the device.

So if you’re a power user looking to get the most life out of your next smartphone, grab the Droid X or the Dell Streak. Both sport massive LCD displays and are powerhouses when it comes to their battery life. We’d like to see how some other competitors would perform against these devices.

Now you know the most long-lasting Android devices on the market, does that sway you in any way? Or do you not have a problem with carrying a spare battery?

I’ve always wanted to see a good comparison of battery life with these phones but I understand that its pretty much impossible to have a very accurate test. There are just too many factors, but this was obviously one of the best ones yet because My Settings and ATK were used. However, the batteries all need to be worked in the exact same amount to really have a successful test. My Samsung Captivate had a TERRIBLE battery life the first two weeks, but after about 20-30 charges it’s life shot up at least 50% extra and would last through the day with heavy use when I use to charge it around 3pm. I’ve heard the same from a friend with the Droid X (4 hours heavy use at first and a full day after 2 weeks). This is a very important factor and without actually taking this into account this test really isn’t as valid as many might think. It’s still cool to see though, so thanks for that.

GoBucks

I suspect there is something afoot with the Captivate and Vibrant, they should do better than that. There is no reason the EPIC 4G should last longer, it’s the same phone, except the EPIC has 4G and a flash, and a slide out keyboard.

I’m waiting for Tuesday when I can get the EPIC 4G, if Sprint’s coverage area doesn’t work out, I’ll wait for the Fascinate on Verizon.

Doug Katz

Great article. I have a Sprint HERO, which I am upgrading in the next weeks and battery life has been a huge consideration.

My question centers on Super AMOLED and whether leveraging the technology would benefit power consumption. Based on my understanding, the power savings with AMOLED comes from no power requirement when pixels show black. I would think, therefore, that there would be some power savings in the background wallpaper that you choose. If it is color rich, it would use power, but if you went with basic black, you could leverage the power saving aspects of the technology. In this case any AMOLED based screen should win out. Any thoughts?

Cameron

I have to say at first yes my samsung captivate had horrible battery life but now after charging it for a couple of weeks it improved… I also have uploaded a new firmware released by samsung… its not ATT approved but its the JH3 firmware. This made a drastic difference in battery life. Yesterday I went from unplugging the phone around 6am and not having to recharge it till about 6pm that night… That was moderate heavy use as well…

I really think that they should reflash the firmware then test the captivate again… see what they come up with.

What I don’t understand is why battery life isn’t anywhere NEAR as good as a Blackberry.

I had an Android phone for nearly a year and wanted to throw the thing at the wall so many times because I need my phone to be able to fully function all day and sadly it would only last me from 8 am to about 2 or 3 pm with mild usage, texts and calls and gps while plugged into my car.

I finally broke down and bought a Bold 9700 a few months ago and I can use this thing hard core, non-stop messaging, calls, 3G internet ALL day for nearly TWO WHOLE DAYS between charges.

What gives???

The EXACT moment an Android phone comes out that can rival the battery life of a Blackberry, it’s all over smart phone world, sign me up for life.

Calilife916

That’s because Android is a battery hog. It’s such a powerful OS where you can do so much it takes a toll on it.

AdamG

I’m not sure if that’s accurate. It’s more open, but not particularly more powerful.

ap

What I don’t understand is why the author doesn’t mention that SAMOLED displays consume 3x the power when displaying white on the screen. Other than that they provide commendable battery life. This is the only place where LCD knock the hell out of the SAMOLED screens.